Lisa was
born in Casper, Wyoming and grew up in Calgary, Canada. An athlete
all her life, Lisa began figure skating at age 5, and competed at
the amateur level for years before turning professional. She is also
a classically trained pianist. Lisa was a financial analyst and aerobics
instructor, became paralyzed from the chest down (at level T3-4) in
1985, and went from teaching aerobics walking, to teaching from her
wheelchair. Besides creating and teaching seated aerobics, Lisa has
continued to swim, has played wheelchair tennis, basketball, done
cross-country arm cycling and mono-skiing at Winter Park & Vail, Colorado.

With her
background in sports, health & fitness, music & choreography, Lisa
became a certified aerobics instructor after she was paralyzed, and
created her seated aerobics program which she still teaches today.
She developed a unique, multi-dimensional system of choreographed
movements to music, for disabled and able-bodied people, or anyone
needing to exercise while seated, including children, older adults
and the obese.

Originally
called S.M.A.R.T., Seated Movement Aerobic & Resistive Training,
she began teaching S.M.A.R.T. at Craig Rehabilitation Hospital in
Englewood, Colorado for spinal cord and traumatic brain injured patients,
at fitness centers, recreation centers, hospitals, schools & universities
around the USA & Canada, & the Colorado Annual Junior Wheelchair Sports
Camp in Denver. She was a regular presenter at many professional
sports & fitness venues, inlcuding the IDEA international conventions
and the NSCA (National Strength & Conditioning Assocation) National
conferences.

Lisa produced
her Seated Aerobics video tape in 1992, which includes an instructional
booklet with pertinent fitness information and actual pictures of
100 of her moves. She has written & published many articles on the
topic, including the S.M.A.R.T. Fitness Handbook.

Lisa has
traveled around the world, teaching and lecturing on her unique system
of seated fitness. She moved to Johannesburg, South Africa from 1994
to 1998, after marrying Dr. Mel Siff, a world renowned sports scientist from WITS
University in Johannesburg. There, she founded the annual South African
Junior Wheelchair Sports Camp, an annual event for physically disabled
children, which she ran for 5 years with assistance from then President
Nelson Mandela.

While in
South Africa, the need for Lisa's expertise was in such demand, that
she was asked to teach her S.M.A.R.T. fitness program at the University
of the Witwatersrand through their continuing education department, for
students to become certified instructors in S.M.A.R.T., and were then
able to teach Lisa's seated aerobics program to whichever specific
groups they chose, including older adults, the obese, people with
mobility impairments, people with disabilities and more.

Lisa has
also been the recipient of many accolades and awards through the years,
including the prestigious Christine MacIntyre Memorial Award from
IDEA (the International Association of Fitness Professionals) & Shape
Magazine, the 1991 HAFL (Healthy American Fitness Leaders) award in
conjunction with the U.S. President's Council on Health & Fitness,
the 1992 Sportswomen of Colorado Award for Exceptional Echievement,
& the Tom Sullivan/Mobil Ten K run for Vistas for the Blind award,
& was specially asknowledged by President Nelson Mandela for her pioneering
work with disabled children in the new South Africa.

Today, Lisa
resides in her home of Denver, Colorado, where she has lived since
1983. She is continuing her life's work in the field of health &
fitness for spinal cord injuries & special populations, & the research
& science of seated fitness and exercise programs for everyone.